Some existing cooktop appliances include radiant heating elements for heating pots, pans, and other containers with food items therein. Generally, the radiant heating elements can be operated at various settings. For example, the radiant heating elements of some appliances can be operated at a low heat setting to simmer food items, or the radiant heating elements can be operated at a high heat setting to boil water or fry food items. When simmering certain food items, such as delicate cream sauce or tomato sauce, heat is preferably applied to such food items at a low and consistent power. The low and consistent power can prevent such food items from spattering, sticking and/or or discoloring when simmered.
In order to transition from low heat to high heat settings, certain existing cooktop appliances use one or more rudimentary switches to cycle on and off different portions of a radiant heating element. For instance, some radiant heating elements may be cycled on/off through one or more switches to achieve a relatively constant average temperature. However, such cycling may bring undesirable results.
In some instances, rapidly and/or frequently cycling the switches of a radiant heating element may limit the overall lifespan of the switches, since many switches have an expected lifetime defined by the number of cycles they are expected to perform. Moreover, extending duty cycles in such appliances can hinder or obstruct application of low, even heat to containers on the cooktop appliance. In particular, long duty cycles can cause relatively large temperature amplitudes in food items within the containers compared to shorter duty cycles. These switches fail to allow precise control over the heat output. In turn, cooking methods that require a precise level of temperature control, such as sous-vide steam cooking, are difficult to employ.
Accordingly, a cooktop appliance with a radiant heating element and features for providing precise heat control without unduly limiting the lifespan of the radiant heating element would be useful.